How Do We Bridge the Digital Gap Worldwide?

Aministerial forum themed “Bridging the Digital Divide” was held in east China’s river town of Wuzhen in Zhejiang Province on November 8, serving as a subforum of the Fifth World Internet Conference.

Officials from 14 countries and regions held discussions with heads of international organizations such as the European Union and world-renowned experts.

They analyzed the phenomenon and problems of the imbalance in global network infrastructure and technology development levels, discussed the role of all sectors at home and abroad in promoting pragmatic exchanges and cooperation, providing solutions for narrowing the digital divide between different countries, regions and populations, and working together to build a community with a shared future in cyberspace. Following are excerpts of their views on bridging the digital divide.

Promoting connectivity Zhuang Rongwen (Minister of Cyberspace Administration of China):

The Internet has profoundly changed people’s work and life, and has promoted social and economic development, which should benefit everyone. Countries should further their cooperation in accelerating the popularization of the Internet and promoting connectivity, so as to jointly push forward the construction of the global Internet infrastructure and narrow the digital gap between countries, regions and groups of people. The Internet should be widely used in poverty reduction and coordinated development. E-commerce expansion in rural areas will bring tangible benefits to these areas so that people can lead rich and happy lives.

Liu Yuzhu ( Director of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage):

To bridge the divide, the Internet’s way of thinking should be adopted, which requires an interconnection of ideas, resources, information, mechanisms and industries. It is necessary to give new life to cultural relics and let cultural heritage promote idea exchanges, dialogue and communication among civilizations.

Wu Zhaohui (President of Zhejiang University and academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences):

The world is currently witnessing unprecedented breakthroughs in science and technology. Information technologies like the Internet, cloud computing and big data are profoundly transforming people’s ideas, work, life and education. Predictably, in the future, the physical world will further get intertwined with the virtual world and they will get along well. Informatization is making education more convenient and inclusive, making the construction of a new space for running schools through informatization key to expanding the coverage of high-quality educational resources and bridging the gap in higher education.

Qu Sixi (Representative of the World Food Program China Office):

The development of the Internet has boosted the flow of information between urban and rural areas, as well as between rich and poor regions. It has made it possible for povertyalleviation efforts and projects to find aidoriented resources, thus narrowing the digital divide between the rich and poor. The Internet is playing an increasingly important role in China’s economic and social development.

It has greatly changed rural areas, connecting some remote areas to the outside world. The flow of information and traffic has boosted the flow of materials. Internet policies provide guidance to digitalization and e-commerce development in rural areas, as Chinese enterprises participate more in the development of rural areas through the Internet.

Garba Shehu ( Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity in Nigeria):

As one of the fastestgrowing telecommunications markets in the world, Nigeria had 161 million active mobile phone users in September. We are taking concrete steps to reduce the digital divide. Chinese companies like Huawei have played an important role in helping our push toward digital inclusion.

More efforts required Zhang Fuhai ( Head of the Publicity Department of Liaoning Provincial Communist Party of China Committee and Director of the Liaoning Provincial Office of Cyberspace Affairs Commission):

Standing at the forefront of Internet development, we should accelerate the construction of a new generation of high-speed, mobile, secure and ubiquitous information infrastructure, promote the application of next-generation information technology, foster new industrial development, and release technology, institutional and innovation dividends. We should enhance governance and promote economic transformation and development.

Zhou Shuchun (Publisher and Editor in Chief of

China Daily): The digital divide should be bridged in the process of maintaining and deepening economic globalization, while the formation of a global digital market should be promoted to give the digital economy new momentum in